How to Take Care of Dry Skin in Winter

You can adjust your skincare routine to nourish your skin during the colder months, including products that will help protect the skin barrier to lock in moisture.

Adjusting your skincare routine in winter

Cleansing and washing your skin correctly in winter is important. Excessive washing can strip your skin of essential oils, leaving it dry. Try to reduce the number of times you wash your face and use gentle hand soaps for regular hand washing. Include hydrating cleansers into your routine, such as Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser.

Exfoliating your skin can be helpful but you may wish to reduce exfoliation frequency in winter to prevent excessive stripping of the skin barrier. Learn more about the correct way to exfoliate in our article: Exfoliation: Why It’s Important & How to Do It Properly. 

What are our best creams and lotions for dry skin in winter?

Creams and lotions are designed to keep your skin hydrated. Lotions are often more lightweight whereas body creams are thicker and tend to contain more oil. To learn more about the differences read What's the Difference Between Face or Body Creams & Lotions?

To help keep moisture locked in during the winter months, moisturizing your skin while it’s damp can be helpful. Cetaphil Advanced Relief Lotion is a good lotion for winter skin as it contains shea butter, hydrating glycerin and panthenol. 

Ointments are also very hydrating as they have a thicker consistency with more oil than creams. Cetaphil Healing Ointment helps to heal and soothe chapped lips and cracked hands and heels. It contains shea butter which softens, smoothens, and hydrates your skin. 

If your skin becomes particularly irritated and dry, try Cetaphil Eczema Restoraderm Flare-up Relief Cream. This rich formulation will help restore your skin barrier and help soothe your skin.

Should you use sunscreen in winter?

Although it may seem strange, you should still apply sunscreen in the winter. In fact, in the coldest conditions, such as when it’s snowing, your skin can be at greater risk since ice and snow reflect the sun’s rays. Additionally UVA rays, one of the main types of sunlight we’re exposed to, are the same strength all year round and can penetrate clouds – so sun protection is important.5

You can use a moisturizer that is boosted with SPF, such as Cetaphil Daily Oil-Free Facial Moisturizer SPF 35, or you could try a Cetaphil Sheer Mineral Sunscreen as the final step in your skincare routine. Find out about adding sunscreen to your skincare routine in our blog article What’s the Best Order to Apply Your Skincare Routine?  

How overnight moisturizers are beneficial in winter

Using skincare products overnight is beneficial in winter as it allows more time for ingredients to be absorbed. This can help prevent dryness during the day. Products which contain emollient properties are particularly beneficial as these create a protective film over the skin to keep moisture locked in. 

Emollient properties can be found in products that contain panthenol, urea, and sweet almond oil. 

Cetaphil Redness Relieving Night Moisturizer is helpful if your dry skin is redness-prone as it rehydrates and boosts your skin overnight to allow you to wake up with hydrated, refreshed looking skin in the morning.